Best Capital One Credit Cards

Note: Some offer details in this article have expired and/or are being changed by the issuer. Appropriate updates will be applied to the article when the changes have been finalized.

Capital One offers some of the most recognizable credit cards available. The reason is because of the celebrity star power they use in their advertisements. Over the years everyone from Laurence Fishburne to Samuel L Jackson and even Jennifer Garner have been the face of a Capital One card.

Star power aside, Capital One still offers some of the best credit cards available. Let’s take a look at our favorite card from different categories.

Best for Travel: Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card

The Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card is our favorite Capital One travel card for one major reason: you can redeem your rewards for any travel expense. When you sign up for the card you will receive a 50,000 mile bonus after spending $3,000 on purchases within three months. Then for every purchase you make using your card, you will receive 2X miles. As an added bonus, Capital One has partnered with Hotels.com to offer Venture cardholders unlimited 10x miles per dollar at hotels.com/venture through January 31, 2020.

The 50,000 miles you receive from the signup bonus would be worth $500 in statement credit towards any travel expense. You can use miles to fly on any airline at any time or book any hotel room with no blackout dates. It’s just that simple.

The Capital One® Venture® Rewards credit card comes with no foreign transaction fees. Plus, it waives the annual fee for the first year, with each subsequent year being $95.

If you are looking to add a cash back card to your wallet, look no further than the Capital One® Quicksilver® Cash Rewards Credit Card. With this card you will earn a $150 cash back bonus after spending $500 on purchases within three months. You will also receive an unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase you make. Earning cash back has never been easier. There are no bonus categories to keep track of and you never need to opt-in just to receive cash back.

You will also receive an introductory 0% APR on purchases and balance transfers for the first 15 months. Once the introductory period is over, the rate will change to a variable 16.24%-26.24% depending on your creditworthiness. All balance transfers within the first 15 months will have a 3% balance transfer fee. There is no fee after the intro period.

With the Capital One® Quicksilver® Card, you will never pay foreign transaction fees or an annual fee.

Best for Less Than Perfect Credit: Capital One® Platinum Credit Card

If your credit isn’t quite good enough to receive one of the Capital One reward cards, then the Capital One® Platinum Credit Card is a great stepping stone. While this card doesn’t offer a lot of glitz and glamour, it does give you a means to improve your credit score. When you make your first five payments on time you will receive an increased credit limit. This card also comes with no annual fee.

One thing that you need to watch out for is that the card comes with a high 26.96% APR. That makes it critical that you pay your balance in full each month or you will be stuck paying high finance charges.

Best for Businesses: Capital One® Spark® Cash for Business

Business owners have a few different options when it comes to picking a Capital One credit card. Our favorite is the Capital One® Spark® Cash for Business. With this card you will earn a very lucrative $500 signup bonus after making $4,500 in purchases within the first three months. In addition, you will also receive 2% cash back on each purchase that you make. You can even offer your employees cards at no additional cost, making it possible to earn rewards from their spending as well.

You will receive no annual fee the first year and then $95 each subsequent year.

Best for Students: Journey® Student Rewards from Capital One®

If you are heading off to college and need a credit card to start building credit, the Journey® Student Rewards from Capital One® is a great option. While you won’t earn a signup bonus with this card, you will earn 1% cash back on each purchase. But it gets even better...if you pay your bill on time, your cash back amount will be raised to 1.25% for that month. If you make your first five monthly payments on time, your credit limit will be increased.

Capital One understands that finances can be difficult during college. That is why they don’t charge any foreign transaction fees or an annual fee with the Journey® Student Rewards from Capital One®. They do however have a high standard APR of 26.96%.

The Bottom Line

No matter if you are looking to earn cash back, travel rewards, or just need to improve your credit, Capital One has a card for you. These are just some of our favorites from different categories.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sean Bryant is a Denver based freelance writer specializing in travel, credit cards and personal finance. With nearly 10 years of writing experience his work has appeared in many of the industries top publications. He holds a bachelor of arts degree in economics. He also runs OneSmartDollar.com. When not working Sean enjoys spending time with his wife, daughter and dog Charlie and can frequently be found on his bike or snowboard.

Editorial Note: Any opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author's alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer.

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EDITORIAL NOTE

Editorial Note: Any opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author's alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer.

Credit Cards Explained may earn affiliate commissions from our partners on this page. These commissions do not affect how we select, rate, or review products. To find out more, read our complete terms of use.